I May Be a Virtual Youtuber, but I Still Go to Work - Chapter 129
Bajubi didn’t give any heads-up to her viewers beforehand.
If she had given advance notice, it would have led to a flood of new viewers, engagement, and all that jazz, but it could also risk alienating her existing fandom. You see, the crowd following Majia is in the thousands, while Bajubi’s fanbase is a much more cozy group of around 300— and that’s a figure that jumped from 50 after the competitive event.
Plus, what Bajubi wanted was a collaboration with her friend Majia, not to leap to higher heights off of her, so this surprise stream wasn’t particularly missed.
Majia found it easier to manage this setup, and thus, with the president’s approval, agreed to it.
So when Bajubi went live as usual, this is what she saw:
[ (🔴Live) It’s Children’s Day! ] 👪204
#Bajubi #Mamanga
No more, no less.
Right after Bajubi turned on the stream, there were 200 viewers.
“…Hello, everyone! Thank you for stopping by again, housewives!”
— Zubha~
— Zubhazubha
— Did you really think you wouldn’t see me if I went live unexpectedly? LOL
“…How did you know? I didn’t even announce it…”
— Because Zubhi is a kid, she should stream on Children’s Day!
— For real, LOL
— It’s common sense for kids to go live on Children’s Day!
“…I keep saying it, but I’m not a kid! I’m a really pretty older sister…”
— LOL
— ROFL
— Here we go again
— Zubhi is a kid, and kids should act like kids!
:: An anonymous supporter just donated 10,000 clouds! ::
:: Okay, okay, I’ll give you the money, just stop squawking! ::
“Thank you for the donation! I was just speaking the truth…”
— Yeah, yeah
— You really don’t back down, do you? LOL
— Got it, LOL
Bajubi’s stream had the same volume as when she spoke in quieter places, almost like muting the first few syllables, but hey, the message got across!
When donations rolled in, she spoke clearly, almost as if rehearsed, showcasing she had the fundamentals of internet streaming down perfectly.
Even though it was just a hobby, structuring the stream into warm-ups, Part 1, Part 2, and cool-down segments showed a surprisingly solid foundation for a casual streamer.
She even created a separate PPT for introducing the segments; that’s some serious dedication!
Many casuals don’t even stick to the basics, so it was intriguing to see Bajubi do it, even if she wasn’t in it for the cash.
Above all, the flow from starting the stream to greetings and guest introductions was a structure familiar to anyone who watched streams.
Especially since the guest was Majia, it was impossible to not recognize.
‘Wow, this flow is so similar to how my kids stream…’
Majia recalled Bajubi’s enthusiastic reaction when Younggun’s team suggested, “Let’s do a Parallel World Cup,” during their after-party.
A typical casual streamer might get overly excited about a sudden opportunity like this, but as we all know, she’s not just broadcasting for fun.
So that reaction back then? Genuine love.
She really loved Parallel, and that could easily be seen.
‘Didn’t show it, but are we fans, perhaps?’
With that curiosity in her heart, Bajubi diligently carried on with the stream, gearing up to introduce her guest.
“…I’ve brought along a special guest today!”
As soon as the word guest left her lips, the chat went wild.
It had hit 300 viewers, and the speed at which the chat fired up was unbelievable.
— ?
— Huh?
— Guest?
— ??
— Whaaat
— Zububi has a guest?!
:: An anonymous supporter just donated 1,000 clouds! ::
:: Hey, Zubhi, it’s Children’s Day! You can’t just say whatever you want… ::
— For real, LOL
— We can’t even bring a guest on! LOL
— No way we can just provoke someone busy to come here!
— Hey, hey, hey! LOL
But everyone clearly didn’t believe Bajubi when she said a guest was coming, teasing her instead.
The reason for that might just be summed up in the next donation.
:: An anonymous supporter just donated 1,000 clouds! ::
:: Hey kiddo, didn’t you win that competitive event before? You’ve been acting a bit too high-and-mighty lately, but you can’t just call any guest you want! ::
— Don’t pressure busy folks! Just keep it normal!
— Zubhi, I like you just the way you are…
— It’s not like dying because we can’t have a collaboration!
In fact, if viewers wanted their own stream to do well, they might think, “What’s with these guys?”
A guest is coming? Who is it? Is he famous? Oh man, Zubhi is finally gonna blow up!
You’d think that’s the natural train of thought, but it seemed like they pretty much wanted Bajubi to stay a casual streamer.
Majia, having once been one of Momo’s viewers back when she had 300 at her streams, could detail exact reasons.
On the surface, it was to protect the streamer.
When someone becomes famous, there’s inevitably a point where they’re going to get hurt, be it real or contrived drama.
As the stream grows, there will be pivotal moments where things get sticky, and those who can endure that mess can become big time, but many others just end up dropping like flies.
That’s why viewers argue that if Bajubi is still a kid, remaining at her current level is just right to prevent any scars.
…But this protective impulse isn’t purely innocent.
As streams grow, naturally the streamer won’t check in on each fan as often, and what felt like true friendship might morph more into a business relationship.
And what if a famous streamer who you don’t like attaches themselves during the growth period? (A.K.A. Movgun)
Then it’s instant disaster, and the headache just swirls.
Thus, there exists a dark desire for her to stay a casual for life.
To protect the streamer, but also to possess her.
It really is a complex mix of feelings.
However, one thing is for sure: Among these fans, if a toxic turret is prevalent, they might end up attacking streamers overflowing with aspirations to grow, treating them as disasters shouting “You can’t rise, don’t even think of it!”
Yet, the vibe in Bajubi’s chat felt different.
You could see the genuine concern, visible through the chat.
It strongly resembled a defensive turret, mind you.
Usually, casual chatrooms teem with masked folks, making it pretty tough to figure out their true minds, but here, it was somewhat transparent.
When Majia’s guest reveal hit, they went through two reactions.
First, awe and surprise.
“…And here’s the manager of VTuber supporting us, Majia! Give her a round of applause!”
“Hello, I’m Majia from Parallel. Somehow, I ended up sending a surprise greeting.”
— ?
— What?
— Huh?
— It’s really Majia?
“Yes, it’s true. Jia, go and don’t make a fuss; do your streaming well, got it? …Yes, President.”
— Whoa, LOL
— It’s real, LOL
— With that Momo voice impersonation, it’s gotta be Majia, LOL
After the initial surprise, worries and concerns began to creep in.
— Soon, a ton of new viewers will flock in!
— It’s finally happening, huh…
— Protect Bajubi!!
They instinctively understood how destructive the influx of new viewers would be during a collaboration with a big streamer.
If all goes well with cheerful new viewers, the stream can flow smoothly in a lively atmosphere, but…
Who is Majia?
Is she launching or not?
She’s notorious for dragging loads of chaotic discussions.
The incoming viewers might be rowdy and, in severe cases, completely overshadow Bajubi, ignoring her altogether, so worry was an absolute must.
Yet, Majia was concerned, too.
She had experienced Momo’s streams turning chaotic thanks to Movgun a few years back, so this time she had every readiness in place.
Even though Parallel as a whole was on hiatus, three individuals stepped up to manage the chat while they were at it.
Gong Seungyeon, who said, “I can’t just chill while my boss is working!” and Majia herself to help manage during the stream, totaling a formidable squad of five ready for action.
Omitting that little detail was primarily because today’s show was all about Bajubi.
It’s a bit off to say, “We’ve taken precautions not to mess up the vibe of the broadcast, so don’t worry!” on someone else’s stream.
Today, Majia was thoroughly going to stay in Bajubi’s shadow, following her lead and playing stagehand to the best of her ability.
Just like when they teamed up during the first generation.
As always, Majia preferred to put herself a tier lower than all other VTubers, and this sentiment was no different, even in the presence of a casual streamer like Bajubi.
Today, the star of the stream was utterly Bajubi.
This part was undeniably clear.
Meanwhile, the news spread, and Parallel fans combined with new viewers began to swarm in.
Observing that surge, Bajubi fell silent as an enormous numerical gap appeared.
[ (🔴Live) It’s Children’s Day! ] 👪6,442
#Bajubi #Mamanga
A number Bajubi had never seen before.
And it kept growing without pause.
The increasingly chaotic chat demonstrated that these numbers were very much real.
— Zaha
— Zaha-zaha
— Come on, give us some heads-up next time!
— My drug has arrived!
— Thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you!
— You saved us, Majia!
— Didn’t think I’d freeze today; I can deal with this LOL
— Jia has come! T_T
— Majia, the savior of Parallel World, has arrived! YAYYYYYY!
— Urgh!
— Urgh! Urgh! Urgh! Urgh! Urgh! Urgh! Urgh! Urgh! Urgh! Urgh! Urgh! Urgh! Urgh! Urgh! Urgh!
— Thought I could keep it chill without you noticing? LOL
— Hey you! Come here and take my praise! Hey you! Come here and take my praise! Hey you! Come here and take my praise! Hey you! Come here and take my praise!
— Come here! Come here! Come here! Come here! Come here! Come here! Come here! Come here! Come here! Come here!
The unruly tide of new viewers naturally stirred the existing fans to push back.
As feared, the majority were only focused on Majia, completely ignoring Bajubi.
But then, at that moment, Majia leaned in towards Bajubi and seized the atmosphere.
“Zubhi, as we discussed earlier, I’ll ban anyone breaking your broadcast rules for a whole month across Parallel.”
— ?
— What?!
— This isn’t even a Parallel stream!
— Whaaat
— Too much!
— Majia declaring her ground right here! 𝒅𝒕𝒍𝒍𝒍𝒎𝒕𝒎𝒄𝒑𝒎 прац
— I AM PARALLEL!!!
Quite the bold stance, and from the first conversation to now, Bajubi was compelled to ask.
“…Are you sure about this?”
“Because I won’t recognize anyone breaking your rules when they mess around on someone else’s stream.”
— Don’t abandon us, our loyal viewers!!!!
— Waaa, traitor!
— Can’t forgive them, can’t forgive them, can’t forgive them, can’t forgive them, can’t forgive them, can’t forgive them!
Majia is a person of her word, swinging the execution hammer.
A dozen or so troublemakers got yeeted, and the chaotic chatter cleared like magic as the chat cleaned up in real-time.
— (Message from a blocked user)
— (Message from a blocked user)
— (Message from a blocked user)
— Kyaaa!
— This is madness!
— (Message from a blocked user)
— Wait, it’s really a month? LOL
— See ya! LOL
— Phew, fewer competitors now, LOL Nice~
As the chat quieted down, Majia once again addressed Bajubi.
“Remember, today’s stream owner is Bajubi. I’m just a guest here, and I’d like to think that the viewers coming along with me are friends visiting.”
It’s the right thing to do to cut ties when friends introduce another friend that doesn’t fit the vibe, right? So, don’t feel too pressured about it.
Even for a hobby stream, no one could ignore the big corporations, especially not the fan base.
But if a big company takes responsibility like this, it makes it much easier for someone like Bajubi to breathe easy.
There are people who vow to take responsibility and then stab you in the back later, but come on—would Majia do that?
Three months without a peep?
Bajubi could’ve just called; she only used a direct DM on Talkcode for that to happen.
Majia made a point of coming down to support and stream with her, even suggesting a Part 2.
“…So, let’s talk about what we’ll do with Jia today. Let’s start from there.”
Bajubi, gaining some courage, whipped out the prepared PPT for content introduction.
“For Part 1, we’re going to run the Parallel World Cup we promised to do before with Jia. Part 2 will be us playing Never Cry, Princess.”
On the surface, that might have sounded like a typical content structure.
Hobbyists have been jumping on the Parallel name to lure in viewers these days, and since Majia was here with a prior agreement, Part 1 seemed obvious.
Part 2, an older game, was suitable for the special occasion of Children’s Day, so it was plain sailing.
But when the details of Part 2 were revealed, the chat went wild.
[Never Cry, Princess]
— Queen Role: Bajubi
— Princess Role: Majia
“We’ll be doing this in full dubbing for Part 2. I’ll provide more details once the World Cup is done.”
— Whaaat?
— Majia is going to play a ten-year-old brat?
— WHAT?! LOL!
:: An anonymous supporter just donated 1,000 clouds! ::
:: It’s trivial, but are clips off limits today? ::
As soon as Majia and Bajubi discussed the clip allowance, the unsatisfied flames of the chat erupted once more.
“Is Bajubi allowing clips on her stream?”
“…I usually do, right?”
“No, please clarify your stance, Bajubi.”
“…I won’t block anyone.”
“Then there are no restrictions on clips. Feel free to make as many as you want!”
— YAYYYYYYY!!!!!!!!!!!!
— WOOOOOO!!!
— This is perfect! LOL
— Majia’s princess dubbing? I can’t resist this!
— Bajubi! Bajubi! Bajubi! Bajubi! Bajubi! Bajubi! Bajubi! Bajubi! Bajubi! Bajubi! Bajubi! Bajubi!
— Bow down to the grand Bajubi!
— This is too funny! LOL
Bam!
:: :: PIN0 just donated 100,000 clouds! :: ::
:: :: Bajubi, is she a goddess? :: ::